


Waiting Game

by Kittyswriting



Series: All Time Lows [3]
Category: Marvel 616, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Clint Is a Good Bro, Established Relationship, Howard Stark's Bad Parenting, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M, Past Child Abuse, Thor Is a Good Bro, Tony Needs a Hug
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-18
Updated: 2015-06-18
Packaged: 2018-04-04 23:22:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,450
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4156848
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kittyswriting/pseuds/Kittyswriting
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Part 3 of the All Time Lows series. Steve didn't think his life could get any more complicated. Tony has publicly denied his father's abuse, even though it was true and Sam might have news on Bucky's whereabouts.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Waiting Game

**Author's Note:**

> AN: Thank you all for all the kudos and comments about this series so far. As for this series timeline this is based a bit before Civil War when Sam was helping search for the Winter Soldier. Again this is all in the 616 comic universe where Howard is a abuse dick, everything he's done is taken from the comics.
> 
> Word prompt: betrayal.

Steve spent the next day in the gym, he'd been sparring with Thor for most of the afternoon. It helped him, today was the day Tony was going to go on camera and say that Howard never hurt him. Steve wanted to be there, and be strong for Tony. But he couldn't, as much as Steve loved Tony and wanted to be that pillar of strength that Tony needed....He couldn't.  
  
He hated himself for that.  
  
Because Tony lived through that abuse, and was strong enough to deny the truth about Howard so other people wouldn't get hurt. But Steve couldn't be strong enough to watch him do it. Tony said he'd be okay without him there, he even admitted it might be a little easier being able to lie without seeing Steve's face. He knew Tony didn't want to do this, didn't want to lie to the world and protect Howard and if Steve thought there was any way to stop him he would.  
  
"Your mind is elsewhere Captain."  
  
"I'm sorry Thor, I'm just worried about something." Steve admitted but whatever Thor was going to say was stopped by Clint coming in, looking at the archer's face he could tell something was wrong. "Do I even want to ask?"  
  
"Probably not, but I'll tell you it anyway. Natasha's calming down Bruce after we saw a little news conference, about Tony denying his dad abused him? Which we all know is bull, we all know what he did so why is Stark lying?" Clint said watching Steve probably trying to see something that only Clint or Natasha seemed to be able to see.  
  
"Tony said that the company could face a huge loss if the truth ever came out, other people could get hurt. People still look up to Howard, Tony wanted to protect those people." Steve's hands clenched into fists, this wasn't fair to anyone.  
  
"And you let him? Tony is all about sacrificing himself, but this is too far. He shouldn't have to defend a man like his father." Clint said clearly getting angry about this whole thing. Which made Steve wonder if this hit a sore spot for Clint.  
  
"I didn't let him do anything, he's his own person. It's his choice. As much as I would love to go out there and tell the world what kind of father Howard really was I can't. I'm not going to take Tony's choice away from him and act like I know what's best for him. Tony doesn't want Howard to hurt anymore people, he wants to keep the truth hidden. I may not like it, but I can see his point in all this." Steve sighed and exited the sparing area where he had been fighting with Thor.  
  
Clint meanwhile seemed to at least accept what Steve had to say. "I get it, I do. But Tony shouldn't have to defend his abuser, no one should have to do that. I know that the company would take a hit but it wouldn't be that bad right?"  
  
Steve was about to say something when a all too familiar voice interrupted them.  
  
"Stark Industries was my father's baby, he put more care and effort into the company than he did me. There's a lot of members on the board right now that were members back when Howard was the CEO. Members that wouldn't be too happy with this, who also would see this as a way to leave. I can't afford to take that kind of risk. Stark Industries also has ties to a lot of charities, charities that help people. If the company were to take a dive and lose money than those charities wouldn't get the funding it needs. I refuse to let those people get hurt because Howard was an abusive drunk." Tony's words hit a note with everyone in the room.  
Steve hadn't expected Tony to be home yet, he definitely didn't expect his boyfriend to have overheard them.  
  
"Tony, I get why you're doing this. But we're your friends, me, Nat, Thor, and Bruce. We don't like seeing you hurt no matter if it's for the greater good or not. Bruce almost Hulked out when he saw you deny it, he was that angry." Clint said softly.  
  
"Hawkeye speaks the truth, you are a most valued friend. We don't like seeing how much this is affecting you and the Captain." Thor added.  
  
Tony looked over at Steve after he listened to Thor and nodded. "I don't like how it's affecting us either, and I mean affecting all of us. I made the choice because it's what's best for business, I maybe should have mentioned this to all of you before denying what my father did. But maybe now this will all blow over and we can get back to normal."  
  
"Wait you're not even going to talk to anyone about it? Like a therapist?" Clint questioned Tony. Confused as to why Tony was so willing to sweep everything under the rug.  
  
"I can't, whatever I say could easily be sold to some reporter. And before you say something about doctor-patient confidentiality it doesn't stop them all, trust me I've been through it before I'm not willing to trust them again."  
  
Tony's words made Steve wonder just how much he hadn't known about his boyfriend. "Tony, what do you by that?"  
  
Before Tony could answer Thor made his way over to Clint. "I do believe this is a conversation best suited for just the two of you. If you need us we shall be in the kitchen area preparing a mighty feast." Thor said as he and Clint left the gym leaving Steve alone with Tony.  
  
Steve turned his attention back to Tony. "Tony...."  
  
"Please don't look at me like that. It wasn't a big deal, I started going to therapy after my parents died, the guy wasn't great he sold my story to the paparazzi. He lost his license, but the reporters had paid him well enough that he didn't need to worry about another job. Thankfully I never mentioned about my parents, just some other stuff." Tony said his voice sounded so weary and tired.  
  
Steve wrapped his arms around Tony and wondered how much abuse and betrayal one person could take. He knew that Tony didn't like talking about his past, he thought that it was because of Howard but now he was almost certain that there was something more to it.  
  
"I trusted my father, and he would beat me. I trusted my mother to protect me, but she turned a blind eye to it. I trusted my therapist, and he sold my story. I trusted Obie, and he tried to kill me. Betrayal is something I'm use to by now." Tony said in a humorless voice that didn't really belong.  
  
"Baby, you shouldn't be use to it. Your parents should have protected you, kept you safe. You deserved better than them. You're so amazing Tony, you've had a difficult life and you managed to still be this wonderful man that I am completely and utterly in love with." Steve said moving his hands to cup Tony's face.  
  
"We all have, I mean Steve the one thing that connects us all is that we've all had shitty pasts and overcome it. Look at Thor, his dad raised him and Loki as brothers and never told Loki he was adopted which made Loki seek revenge and cause all this death and destruction. But that's still Thor's brother, and he still loves him. Natasha was robbed of her childhood. Clint was practically raised by the circus. Bruce....didn't have it easy either. And you grew up a shrimp." Tony said adding a teasing grin at the end.  
  
Steve didn't know anything about Bruce's past but he had a feeling Tony might have. He knew the two of them were close friends, they had bonded over science and became pretty close. Steve was happy Tony had someone like that, someone that understood his genius side.  
  
"But you're my shrimp." Tony added leaning forward to give Steve a quick peck on his lips.  
  
"I am not a shrimp anymore, I've carried you enough times to prove that." Steve said equally as teasing. He knew what Tony was doing, Tony was deflecting and trying to avoid the seriousness of what had happened. So Steve let him. He knew that Tony would talk about it more later, but right now he could tell that maybe a bit of lighthearted fun would help Tony more.  
  
"You do seem to like carrying me places. Besides I love you, whether you're a shrimp or not. I fell in love with your personality the things that make Steve Rogers who he is." Tony said smiling a wide smile. It was one of those brilliant smiles that just took Steve's breath away.  
  
"I love you too. Now was there a reason you came down here?" He asked softly. He couldn't help but think about the idea that popped into his head a few nights ago, it had been a thought that he'd been having for some time now but he hadn't voiced it to anyone yet.  
  
"Yes, actually. A friend of yours might be making a visit soon." Tony said suddenly a lot more serious.  
  
"A friend?"  
  
"Sam." Steve could tell that Tony's eyes were studying him trying to figure something out. He wasn't quite sure why, that is until it hit him.  
  
"You think he might know something about Bucky?" Steve questioned.  
  
"I think he seemed awfully eager to come here. I think that one of the few reasons he'd need to see you so badly is if something about Bucky turned up. But also the timing is just terrible enough for the universe to do something like this." Tony's entire body was rigid and defensive.  
  
"You can't think I'd just up and go?"  
  
"It's Bucky! He's your best friend, you guys have so much history together. I know if there's a chance you're goi-" Tony was silenced when Steve kissed him. Whatever he was planning on saying was forgotten when he looked up at Steve.  
  
"Bucky is my best friend, and I'm gonna look for him when things are better. When it doesn't feel like I'm choosing between my boyfriend and my best friend. You need me, I'm not going to abandon you. We don't even know if Sam's managed to find out anything, but if he has I'm not just going to just leave you to face this alone. I never want to be in the position where I feel like I'm choosing one friend over the other." Steve said firmly, he loved Bucky like a brother but Tony needed him.  
  
"Steve....I can't ask you to stay here just for me. You and Bucky...."  
  
"Are best friends, and he'd understand that I need to be there for my fella. It's not like I'm not doing anything, you have all your tech searching for him, Sam and Natasha are using their resources. We'll find Bucky and help him, but I'm not going to choose. I don't ever want to be the guy that abandons one friend for the sake of another. You're all my family, Bucky is too but I'm not gonna choose between you. You need me and the team needs me."  
  
"We'll find Bucky together Steve, the Avengers are a family and if Sam has a legitimate lead than we'll all go and find him." Tony said with all the determination Steve has come to expect from him.  
  
"But what about the city? And what about the reporters?"  
  
"The Fantastic Four can cover us for at least a week or two, plus there's our friendly neighborhood Spiderman. As for the reporters I could do with a break from seeing my father's face everywhere, ever since this story broke it's.....It's like his ghost has come back to haunt me." Tony shrugged towards the end. Talking about his father was always difficult.  
  
"We're jumping to conclusions, we don't even know if Sam even has anything." Steve didn't want to hope, he had spent so long searching for Bucky and this was probably the worst time for something like this to come up.  
  
"And if he does?"  
  
"Then we'll discuss it with the team. I don't want to be disappointed and hope only for it to be a wild goose chase. I want it to be true, and I want to find him but I'm tired of feeling like I'm failing him." Steve didn't add that he thought he needed to be here for Tony. He wasn't sure if Tony was dealing with the abuse, part of him was worried Tony would break and he wouldn't be there to help him.  
  
"You're not failing anyone Steve, Bucky went toe to toe with you. I'm more than confident in his ability to look after himself. We'll find him, and get him help for what they did to him. I know I can definitely make a way better arm than the one he has now. But don't put that kind of pressure on yourself, it won't help Bucky." Tony said softly, his hands going around Steve's waist.  
  
"Okay. First we'll see what Sam has to say before we decide on anything." Steve said leaning down to kiss Tony's forehead.  
  
"And even if he doesn't the minute Bucky turns up we'll bring him back as a team." Tony said his head resting against Steve's chest.  
  
"I like that plan. But for now I think you and I could do with a little alone time. What do you say?" Steve asked his hands moving to Tony's sides rubbing them up and down.  
  
"I say that plan sounds like an excellent idea Mr Rogers." Tony said with his usual flirty charm.  
Instead of saying anything else Steve lifted Tony up and carried him to the elevator. They both needed a bit of relaxation and fun, something to take their minds off of the circus their lives were becoming. He knew that sooner or later Tony would need to talk about Howard, he also knew that with Sam coming it could bring news about Bucky which would add another complication.  
  
How was he suppose to do this?  
  
He needed to find Bucky but he couldn't leave Tony, not when his boyfriend needed him the most. And if Tony did come with him on the hunt for Bucky and they found him what would he do then? Would Bucky come with him? Would Tony be able to handle looking when all this stuff was still so fresh with Howard?  
  
Steve didn't know, and he hated not knowing.


End file.
